Never Going Back
by mischiefmanaged0116
Summary: An eventual lead in to the MCU and the Avengers. Tony Stark is wandering through London when he finds a small boy huddled against the building who tugs at his heartstrings. A dinner, some phone calls, and the Marvel and Harry Potter Universes are changed forever. First in the Neververse.


A/N: New Story! Breaking Free is not abandoned, I just have writers block, and there *might* be an update next weekend.

Please don't bash the characterization. All will be explained next chapter. Read and Review!

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, nor do I own Tony Stark.

**Chapter One: The Streets of London**

* * *

"Yes, Obie, I know that I need to be back to New York for a conference in two weeks." Tony said into his phone flippantly. "Yes, I'll write up the presentation before I get back...scratch that, I'll call Pepper to write up the presentation for me. Yes, I'll call everyday. No, I won't get myself mugged or anything. Goodbye, Obie."

He smirked as he hung up the phone. He knew Obie would be pissed at him since he didn't come straight home from Switzerland, but who cares? He _was _an adult (most of the time), even though he didn't act it, and was perfectly capable of making his own decisions. Besides, Obie should have expected this. He knew how much Tony loved England, even though he wasn't completely sure why.

With a sigh, Tony donned a pair of sunglasses and left the London hotel he had booked into for the next two weeks. It would be nice to get away from the majority of the media for a fortnight. After all, they didn't know that London was his favorite haunt, didn't know that London was where he had escaped to after his parents had died. He had always felt a connection to England, so that was where he went. He stayed there until the November he turned 21.

As he walked down the snow covered streets, he felt himself pulled back in time, to right after his parents died. Everything had been so raw then; his parents' death and teenage angst had nearly torn him apart on these very streets. It had taken him those years to block all of that out, to focus on becoming on someone the public wanted him to be. Now, here he was, just over six years later, and he wondered if he had made the right decisions all of those years ago. Running a hand through his untidy black hair, Tony shook those thoughts out of his head. Those choices had been made, and there was no changing them...no matter how much he wanted to sometimes.

It was in this city that he had decided on the "genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist" persona. It was in this city that he had pushed all emotions towards the back of his mind. It was in this city that he had prepared himself to become a public figure.

It was in London, England, that Tony became Tony Stark, CEO of Stark Enterprises.

* * *

The day after his jaunt down memory lane, Tony called Pepper about the speech. It was considerably more enjoyable than his conversation with Obie, as Pepper was resigned to the fact that he was going to do what he wanted no matter what. Her only condition was that if she hadn't heard from him two days before the conference, she was flying to London and hunting him down.

As he walked through London hours later, he briefly toyed with the idea of refusing to call her to see if she would actually come after him. Knowing Pepper, she would, but it still might be interesting to see. He'd have to think on that a bit...for now though, he should probably go find something to eat. It was nearing eleven o'clock at night now, and Tony hadn't eaten since lunch.

His mind made up, made his way down the road, pulling his coat a little tighter around him. Ever since the sun had set several hours ago, temperature had been dropping swiftly. Tony considered calling a cab, but the cold had never bothered him, and walking wouldn't kill him. The majority of London seemed to disagree with him however, as there were very few people around. In fact, on the street Tony was currently on, there was only one other person he could see in the light of the streetlights.

_It has to be a kid,_ Tony observed, looking at the small figure huddled up against the building. _But what the hell is a kid doing in London at eleven o'clock at night, with no parents, and in an old, worn jacket? Especially one that young! He can't be more than eight years old. Probably more like six or seven._

Tony stopped and watched the kid for a few minutes. With every minute that passed, the kid started shaking more and more. He didn't look like the average 'kid who lost their parent(s)', and Tony, with a flash towards his childhood of indifferent neglect, wondered if maybe the kid had problems at home. What other reason would he be out on the London streets this late at night?

"Hey, kid!" Tony called out impulsively, walking a few steps closer to the kid. The kid looked up, fear written on his face, and Tony had to clamp down on a gasp. There were no bruises on his face, but there were several scratches and one cheek looked a bit swollen. No, that wasn't what caused his near-gasp, although it did contribute to it. Besides the boy's eyes, which were a bright emerald green, and a few of his facial features, he looked almost identical to Tony.

"I-I didn't do anything wrong, I swear it wasn't me!" The boy said quickly, eyes darting around, presumably looking for an escape route. He backed up a few steps, quickly enough that he almost fell over backwards.

"Easy there, killer." The kid stiffened even more, and Tony rapidly tried to smooth it over. "It's just a saying kid, calm down. I know you didn't do anything." The boy regarded him somewhat suspiciously, but he stopped looking like a hunted animal, which was an improvement. So Tony tried again.

"What's your name, kid? Mine's Tony." He said slowly, wondering when the 'stranger danger' thing was going to kick in. All kids _were _still taught that, weren't they?

The kid regarded Tony for a moment, almost as if assessing his danger level. Finally, the kid seemed to find what he was looking for, as his posture relaxed and he let a small smile cross his face. "I'm Harry."

"So, Harry, what are you doing in London on this fine evening?" Tony asked with only a hint of his normal sarcasm in his voice. Harry just looked at him, still shaking. Tony sighed. "When was the last time you had something to eat?"

Something in Harry's eyes lit up at the mention of food. Tony had the feeling that it had been quite a while since the last time Harry had eaten anything. So where could he take a young kid to eat? "There's a Hard Rock Cafe about five minutes away...it's the best American food you'll ever have unless you're actually in the States. You up for it? It'll be nice and warm."

Harry bit his lip in thought, and Tony waited. Hard Rock Cafe was at least child-friendly, it would be warm, and they were open until just after midnight. Yes, it was slightly overpriced, but that wasn't exactly a problem for him...

Tony focused back on Harry, who had a hesitant look on his face as he nodded in agreement. He motioned with his head for Harry to follow him, and the two of them set off down the sidewalk in a not comfortable yet not awkward silence. The fact that Harry had agreed to come with him didn't paint a good picture about his family life, and Tony knew he wouldn't be able to knowingly send the kid back to an abusive home. Nor would he be able to leave the kid on the streets. He would have to call Pepper and have her take care of it.

Tony, thinking about what he had to do, walked past the cafe, but didn't realize it until about three minutes later, when he finally decided to surface from the depths of his mind. When he did, he turned to look at Harry, partly amused and partly curious. "Were you ever going to tell me that I passed the Hard Rock Cafe?"

Green eyes snapped up to meet his in fear, but the boy had a surprisingly even tone when he muttered, "I'm not supposed to question adults. I figured you might have changed your mind anyway, sir."

"It's Tony, Harry. Not sir. Tony." Tony said as gently as he could manage, turning around and walking in the other direction. Harry followed, slightly less hesitant than before. "And you can question me as much as you'd like. I barely qualify as an adult anyway, if that makes you feel better."

Harry nodded doubtfully. "I'm allowed to ask questions? You aren't going to yell at me or bea-be mad?" He asked in clarification. Tony nodded, trying not to narrow his eyes at the stutter. Had Harry been about to say beat me?

"Why are you being nice to me?" Harry asked bluntly after a moment. Tony's eyes widened slightly, before he managed to counter back.

"Why were you so willing to follow a perfect stranger around?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. The two of them stared at each other a minute until Tony sighed. "Can this wait until the Hard Rock Cafe? I have a feeling this is going to be a long conversation, and we need to get out of the cold. Especially you." Tony wasn't sure if the redness of Harry's face was due to the cold or a blush, but either way, Harry silently followed him to the cafe.

Upon walking in, Tony observed that there were no other customers in the small restaurant, which was not unexpected for eleven-thirty on a bitter Thursday night. The only person in sight was a short, slightly plump, blonde-haired waitress. Tony internally groaned. Great. This was not exactly a conversation he wanted to have while a mother hen was hovering around. At least it would be interesting.

"Hello, dears, will it just be the two of you?" The woman asked with a smile, and Tony nodded. "My name is Mary, and I'll be your waitress tonight. Would you like a kid's menu?"

"That would be great, thank you Mary." Tony said as Mary picked up a children's menu and started to lead him and Harry to a table.

"It's no problem, honey. It's a bit late for the little one to be out though, isn't it?" She asked in a mothering tone, and Tony just smiled charmingly.

"We were doing some sightseeing, and lost track of time. And of course we wanted to come eat at the famous Hard Rock Cafe." Tony said with a fake 'tourist voice'. "Anyway, Harry's seven years old and every once in a while, he's allowed to stay up late as a treat."

"Well isn't that adorable." Mary cooed. "I'll be back in a moment for your drink orders."

Tony held his breath until the woman had left to go into the kitchen, when he let out a sigh and his head fell onto the table with a clunk. He looked up when he heard a snort, and met Harry's eyes. "You're a good actor." He said with a slight smile. "But I'm eight and a half, not seven."

Tony just stared at him. "Well, you're seven tonight. More pressing is the fact that I just established us as being related, meanwhile, you have that British accent that I lost a few years ago, and I portrayed us as tourists. Try not to talk when Mother-Hen-Mary is around, okay kid?" He ran a hand through his hair. "We'll have our conversation while we're waiting for dinner to come out."

Harry nodded, and it was a good thing, as Mary came bustling out of the kitchen with a notepad and pen in hand. "What do you want to drink?" Tony whispered urgently. Harry just shrugged.

"Alright, what can I get for you?" She asked with a broad smile .

"Let's see...Harry's going to have a glass of water," Tony decided, skimming over the drinks menu. "And I'll have a...cosmopolitan."

Mary stared at Tony, and he blinked. Did she need to see his ID? Mary walked over to Harry and looking into his eyes, said quietly, "Sweetie, does your dad always order adult drinks when you're around?" Harry just looked at her. "If he's ever made you uncomfortable, or hurt you or anything, I can help you. You need to tell me though."

Right. He was sitting with an eight year old kid, who looked slightly abused, or at least neglected. So...no alcohol? "On second thought, I'll have a diet water with two lemon." Mary continued to look at him as if he was insane, and Tony had to stop himself from slamming his head against the table. He wasn't good in these types of situation. "Just bring us each an ice water."

Mary shot him one last critical look, before walking away towards the kitchen. Tony sighed in relief. "Apparently ordering alcohol around children is frowned upon here. At least, it is around 11:30 at night. Who would've known? Did you?"

"So that's what that was all about..." Harry said quietly. Tony frowned.

"What? Do your parents usually order drinks when they're out with you?" Tony questioned the young boy in front of him. Angry drunks as parents...at least that would explain the hinted at abuse. Something didn't seem right about that though.

"My parents are dead." Ah, that's why.

"So...who do you live with then? And why did I find you on the streets of London, alone?" Tony asked bluntly, preferring not to beat around the bush. Harry, who had been looking at the table, looked up at Tony in shock.

"I...I was separated from my family. I wandered away while we were shopping and when I went back they weren't there. I'm not sure where they went." Harry said, looking down at the table and picking at the hem of his shirt. Tony raised an eyebrow.

"I don't-"

"Here's your water," Mary said, placing the glasses on the table. Her demeanor had changed a bit, Tony noted. It was less effusive; she seemed slightly more reserved. She whipped her notepad out, and said, "Alright, I'm ready to take your order."

Tony closed his eyes briefly. This was bound to be interesting. "Let's see...I'll have the New York Strip Steak with a Shrimp Skewer. Medium Rare please."

Mary nodded. "And you, dear?" She said, turning towards Harry. Harry looked down at his kid's menu, and to Tony, it looked as though he was quickly reading all of the choices and choosing one at random. It wasn't a particularly exotic children's menu though...pretty basic actually, from what Tony had seen of it.

"I'll have the Chicken Tenders please, ma'am." Harry said softly, and compared to Tony's American accent, Harry's British one stood out a lot. Tony winced as he saw Mary's eyes widen, before narrowing on him in suspicion. He quickly began thinking of a new story.

"I thought you were both tourists. And related." She said, and the accusation was clear in her voice. Tony gulped. He hoped he could come up with a decent cover story and prevent her from calling the cops. Pepper would kill him if he got arrested.

"Technically, we are." Tony said, in a downtrodden voice. What could he use as his cover story? "I really don't like to talk about it."

"Talk about what?" Mary said, but there was less suspicion in her voice. Suddenly, an idea popped into his head. What about a messy divorce?

"You see, around three years ago, while Harry was four, my company transferred its headquarters to the US, and my job along with it. I told my wife, who nearly went ballistic on me, telling me it wasn't fair to make little Harry relocate, and it wasn't fair to make her leave all her friends and family. Long story short, she ended up divorcing me and got full custody of Harry here. I come back and visit every two or three months, as I'm pretty high up in the company, but it isn't the same. Last year, my ex-wife started seeing this guy, and he moved in with them. I have a feeling he's a bit," Tony paused and made a few vague smacking motions with his hand, "and Harry has recently said he wants to come live with me in the States. So I'm here for a while, trying to get custody."

Throughout the story, Mary's face had softened, giving her a positively mothering look. "Oh you poor dears. I have to ask though, why the tourist story?"

"Well, ma'am, with me having a British accent and him having an American accent, people have a tendency to jump to conclusions." Harry said softly, and Mary had the decency to look aside for a moment. "It's easier for me to just stay quiet. I'm pretty quiet anyways, actually."

"Oh, dears, I'm so sorry about my attitude, I just-"

"Don't worry about it, Mary. I know how it looks, and its a credit to your character that you care so much about perfect strangers." Tony said with what he hoped was a soft smile.

"I still apologize." Mary said adamantly. "If you don't mind me asking, how is the custody battle coming?"

At this, Tony looked straight at Harry, who was fidgeting again, as he said: "The battle has barely begun, but I swear Harry will never go back there if there is a problem. I will do everything in my power to make sure that when I board my plane headed for the US, Harry is sitting right next to me."

Mary sniffled. "That's simply charming...I'll go put your food orders in and leave you alone for a bit. I think you two have a lot to talk about that you would rather not have overheard."

"Thank you, Mary." Tony said as sincerely as he ever did as the woman walked away. As she disappeared through the kitchen door, he turned to Harry. The boy was staring out of the window, seemingly lost in thought, but Tony thought he saw unshed tears glistening in the boy's eyes. "Harry?"

Harry seemingly ignored him, only shifting his weight slightly to get in a more comfortable position, and in the process, his overlarge shirt shifted slightly, and Tony gasped when he saw the tip of a purple bruise, confirming his earlier thoughts. Harry turned at the gasp, and seeing what it was that had caused the noise, he blanched slightly. He swiftly adjusted his shirt and looked as though he was getting ready to leave. "You know, not all of what I said was a part of the lie, you know."

Harry looked at him quizzically, so Tony continued. "I meant the last part of what I said. I will get you out of an abusive home, heck, I'll even take you back to the States with me if you want and it's possible. But even if you don't come to the US, I will make sure that you never have to go back. You have to tell me though."

"I suppose I might as well...anything is better than fending for myself on the streets of London." Harry said, after barely a moment of hesitation.

"I suppose your caretakers left you here purposely then?" Tony asked, taking a sip of his water. Harry did the same, before beginning to talk.

"Yeah. You see, yesterday was my cousin's birthday, and..."

* * *

After dinner, Harry and Tony made their way back to the room Tony had rented for his stay in London. It had been decided that Harry would stay with him a few days, until Tony, with lots of help from Pepper, could manage to sort out a more permanent situation. Now, all that Tony had to do was call Pepper.

"Make yourself at home, Harry. I'm just gonna call Pepper quick...you could go shower or something if you want." Tony said, while entering the small kitchenette in order to make his phone call. He knew Pepper probably wouldn't be too happy with him, but...

Before he could lose his nerve, he quickly called Pepper's cell phone, not sure if he wanted an answer or not. That choice was taken out of his hands when a feminine voice said, "Hello?"

"Hey Pepper, it's Tony." He said, trying to keep the trepidation out of his voice. He obviously didn't succeed as a moment later, Pepper responded with a suspicious tone.

"What did you do now, Tony?" Tony winced, before spilling the entire story, up to and including his lie to Mary. "Tony...what were you thinking?!"

"I was thinking I saw an abandoned kid in London wearing little more than rags, and thought that maybe I could help. He's been abused, Pepper. His uncle beat him, they barely fed him, he was locked in a cupboard..." Tony trailed off in anger. "I want to help him, Pepper."

There was silence on the other end of his cell phone for several moments, before he heard a resigned sigh. "I'm getting on a plane now."

"Thanks Pepper...he really needs our help." Apparently Pepper had nothing to say to that, as Tony heard a click several seconds later.


End file.
